Back and Forth
by Eleni.Hoax
Summary: "He's doing it again." "I know," Lily hissed. "Why does he keep doing that?" Mary gave her a deadpanned look. "Lily. You KNOW why he stares." He loves her; she can't stand him. He wants her; she thinks he's a joke. Back and forth they go: the rivalry and love story we all adore, told by alternating Lily and James' POV's.
1. 1 Year One

**Author's Note:**

 **Hi guys! Thanks for checking out my fanfic. I'm hoping to finish by February, but I'm a new mom and life gets pretty busy! I really want to finish this story as my last one, Gruff Impression (my other baby) never got an end. I had an _extensive_ storyline from years of edits, but in the end, I never finished because of how complex the story became. I am hoping to write a more simple story that is actually doable here! The story will alternate each year from Lily's POV to James' POV and only have a few scenes per year. They kind of operate outside each other's circles for the first few years, but as we know, it gets better. ;) I will not try to include _every_ scene Rowling has produced, because we already know those ones. So I'll include the reaction surrounding the events as that is the new material. Hope you enjoy. :) Rated K+ for now but might move to a T depending on how things go.**

 **I love reviews!**

Year One.

Lily's POV

The high, screeching whistle of the Hogwarts Express sounded. It was nothing compared to the beauty of the scarlet train herself.

Lily had never seen such chaos and excitement before. _Actual_ witches and wizards scrounged about for their luggage, their toads, their owls swooping overhead. Magic suitcases called to their owners. A kid stepped on owl droppings and sparks shot up from his wand In surprise as he slipped. Someone lost their lunch, and another lost their child. He had ducked under an invisibility cloak.

Absolute chaos. Lily loved it.

"Goodbye Mum, 'bye Dad," she gave quick hugs to her parents on tippy-toes. Tunia had stayed in the car. Forcing herself not to think about the hurtful words her sister had said as their final goodbye, Lily turned to the scarlet engine once more, took a breath, and stepped forward.

Heart heavy, Lily made her way inside the train, suddenly feeling very small and very alone. The chaos continued as older students bumped past her, hurrying down the corridor. She found a compartment with a boy her age sitting alone. He had brown hair and was dressed in a blue and white striped shirt that was frayed slightly. He sat quite politely all by himself.

"Hullo."

He smiled warmly when she entered.

"My name's Lily."

"Hullo. I'm Remus," he replied.

"Pleased to meet you Remus." Lily sat next to the boy. "You don't mind if I sit with you, do you?" He shook his head. "That's a relief. I mean, it'd be a bit awkward otherwise, but you were sitting here all alone anyhow, and . . ."

Remus smiled again. "Are you a first year too, then?" He asked, looking at the badge on her robes.

"Er, yes." Lily tucked some hair behind her ears. Was she not supposed to be in robes yet? There was so much to learn!

Before either of them could continue, a ruckus of laughter emanated just outside their compartment and the door flew open to reveal a messy-haired boy with glasses. He stopped short. A second boy with black hair bumped into him and he staggered forward, into the compartment.

The black-haired one gave him a curious look before pushing past him to stand before Lily and Remus.

"Hullo. I'm Sirius Black. Who might you be?" he asked, giving her a dashing smile that, clearly, he practised.

"Lily." She flickered her eyes to the silent boy. "Who's your friend?" The other boy shook himself and smiled. Lily didn't fail to notice the mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Potter. James." He offered a handshake and Lily took it hesitantly. He jerked her forward and lightning fast, cracked something over her head with his other hand. A puff of blue smoke emanated above Lily's head as she looked down and blue was smeared all over her hair and robes.

The boy James cackled. "Nice to meet you."

Sirius Black joined the laughter. Lily threw James Potter's hand down hotly.

"That's not any way to greet someone!" she yelled, cheeks flushed scarlet. She looked ready to murder them.

"C'mon mate," Sirius put a hand on James' chest, "I don't think we're welcome here anymore." He gave a nod in Remus Lupin's direction and exited. James gave an indifferent shrug and followed as he ruffled his hair.

Lily looked down at her robes incredulously. She was painted _blue!_

Groaning long and hard, she turned to Remus. "What am I going to _do?_ I can't show up like this!"

Remus looked like he was trying to smother a laugh. "I - uh - might have something that could help." He pulled out a spell book that was not on their reading list and rifled through it until he found a cleaning spell.

"Ooooh," Lily's wide eyes danced. "Are we going to perform some magic? I can't wait to use my wand some more. I've just tried a few small things with my friend Sev." Not that she was particularly pleased with her friend at the moment . . .

Remus gave her a curious smile. "Of course we're going to use magic," he said. "We're a wizard and witch, after all."

Lily grinned. "Right."

Some short minutes later Lily was - thankfully - un-blue-ified. So far, there had been no sign of Sev, which gave Lily mixed feelings. Under normal circumstances, she should be with him, gushing over their long-awaited dream that was _finally_ coming true. But after what happened today with Tuney . . .

A porky boy, Sirius Black, and James Potter emerged in the doorframe. The first boy waved and gave a nervous smile. "H-hi. I'm Peter Pettigrew." He gestured to the other two. "And this is -"

Lily glared at James. "I thought I told _you_ to get lost," she said. Peter's face fell and he looked embarrassed from the interruption.

"Train's full." He grinned, popping what looked like a jelly bean into his mouth.

Remus looked between Lily and the boys as if uncertain he should proceed. "Er, would you like to sit down?" he said politely. Lily frowned.

"Are those Bertie Botts?" Peter asked of James. He grinned. "Yeah. You want some?" He pulled out a bag from his pocket and a stack of magic playing cards and sat down on the floor. "C'mon, I'll play you for them." Sirius joined them and James looked up at Remus and Lily. "You lot in?"

"No thank you," Lily quipped. She huffed and folded her arms, turns big to the window. James shrugged.

"Suit yourself. Mate?" He turned to Remus, who threw another glance at Lily before shrugging and sliding to the floor as well.

 _Traitor,_ Lily thought. Overall her excitement died as the chatter started and she found herself wishing to be alone.

 _Ugh_ , _I should be happy. I'm on my way to Hogwarts!_ It didn't work. As if to add insult, her sister's cruel words echoed in her mind.

" _You think I want to be a – a freak?"_

Petunia had been mad because she found out that Lily and Severus had read Dumbledore's reply denying her request to go to Hogwarts. From that time on, Petunia had become disdainful of Lily's magical abilities.

The door opened yet again. Lily glanced over to see Severus entering, also having adorned his robes. He looked relieved to have found her.

"Hey mate, want to play?" Sirius asked, interrupting Sev's line line of focus.

Sev looked surprised. "No," he said distrustfully, as though he thought it might be a prank. "I'm busy." He headed straight for Lily.

"Jeez, just asking." Sirius made a face behind his back.

Severus sat.

"I don't want to talk to you," she said in a tight voice. The four boys had gone back to playing.

"Why not?"

"Tuney h-hates me."

"So what?"

Lily shot him a dark look.

"So she's my sister!"

"She's only a -" he caught himself before saying "muggle" as Lily wiped away a sudden tear. not paying his comment any attention.

Severus's voice changed to excitement as he piped, "But we're going! This is it! We're off to Hogwarts!" Lily nodded and gave a half-smile.

"You'd better be in Slytherin," Sev said seriously.

"Slytherin?" James tore himself away from the game "Who wants to be in Slytherin? I'd think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" He directed the question to Sirius, giving a grin. Sirius, however, looked grim.

"My whole family have been in Slytherin," he said, quieter.

"Blimey. And I thought you seemed alright!"

A slow grin broke over Sirius's face, "Maybe I'll break the tradition. Where are you heading, if you've got a choice?"

Potter pretended to brandish a sword. "'Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart!' Like my dad." He sat.

Much to Lily's dislike, Sev made a rude, disparaging noise, making James turn back to him.

"Got a problem with that?"

"No," he said slowly with a bit of a sneer. "If you'd rather be brawny than brainy -"

"Where're you hoping to go, seeing as you're neither?" Sirius countered. James and Sirius roared with laughter and Lily sat up straight. She couldn't take these two anymore. "Come on, Severus, let's find another compartment."

"Ooooooh . . ." James tried to trip Sev as he and Lily headed for the door. "See ya, _Snivellus!_ "

* * *

Sev and Lily walked through the entrance hall, he with a green and silver tie hanging loosely around his neck, and she with her scarlet, polished pin. They were on their way to explore the courtyard when a gang of Slytherins emerged. The foremost of them, a tall prefect who had greeted Sev at the Sorting, halted the others when he spotted the first years. He had perfectly combed blonde hair and manicured fingers and was the oldest of the group. He towered over them and stared at Sev.

He opened his mouth, assessed Sev's bedraggled appearance some more, and said finally: "Did I hear correctly that you preformed a knee-reversal hex yesterday?" His voice was as smooth as honey but carried a perilous lilt.

Lily glanced at the Slytherins behind the prefect. They varied in age but all carried the same menacing look. Sev looked only at the leader, quietly calculating.

"Yes," he said in his soft voice. He did not break contact.

The prefect's lip twitched. "I haven't heard of that being used for nearly a century. Where _did_ you come across it?" His words carried weight, as if everything he said was important.

Sev stared on, but as always, he looked from _under_ his lids, as a mistrusting animal; he never directly stared at a person's eyes until he felt directly threatened.

He hunched his shoulders and said, "Picked it up somewhere."

"That's quite a feat. And you're a first year?"

From under his lids Sev stared at the prefect and nodded, and Lily saw a tinge of curiosity in him.

The prefect's lip twitched again, this time showing the start of a smirk.

A willowy fourth year gave a derogatory scoff. "He's a first year, Lucius. Probably did it by accident."

"No he didn't," Lily glared. "I heard him make the incantation." She did not like the threatening feeling these boys emanated. She wanted her and Sev to leave.

The boy Lucius kept his penetrating eyes on Sev, saying. "I don't think so, Wilkes . . . I think we have a natural on our hands. Slytherin produced yet again."

Severus, though still keeping up defenses, was definitely interested by this Lucius.

A third year and seemingly the second in command stepped forward. "I told you, Loosh," Lucius broke eye contact to cast a sneer for the nickname. "He keeps to himself and doesn't say much. Guy's a freak."

"He's not a freak!" Lily said defiantly.

At Lily's words Lucius turned his eye towards her, taking in her Gryffindor scarf, red hair, and determined face. His lips parted, and asked softly, "Are you by chance related to the Weasleys?"

Lily scrounged up her face, wary of the question. "Who?"

"Never mind," he said slyly, "I thought you looked too clean to be." Turning back to Severus, he smiled. "I'm Lucius Malfoy." Nodding to the third year on his right, "Evan Rosier. That's Wilkes," he said, nodding to his left. "We'll be seeing you around, ah, what was it?"

"Sna- Severus," Sev said, catching himself on the last name.

"We'll be seeing you around, Severus . . ." Lucius slinked off, his cronies flanking him. Snape stared after their backs for a moment until Lily tugged slightly on his sleeve.

* * *

Thursday's last session was Defense Against the Dark Arts with the Slytherins. They filed in along the rest of the first years and Lily chose a table next to a blonde named Gabrielle Charmant. It was near the front-middle; Lily wanted to catch anything a teacher demonstrated when it involved magic. She was thrilled to start every new course.

The students did not know whether it would be a serious class like McGonagall's Transfiguration, or fun and silly like Professor Flitwick in Charms. Because of this, the classroom seemed a bit ominous; shafts of afternoon light fell through a high and narrow window. The air in the basement felt musky and there were odd instruments and a trunk lying around walls. No one knew what to expect.

Just before the bell rang the students quieted instinctively, knowing it would soon begin. A creek emitted from the office door which silenced all movement and out swooped a man in murky blue robes. He was of average height with dark blonde hair.

He scanned them silently from the top of the stair with drops of grey-blue eyes. They waited.

Then he split into a grin. The class relaxed.

"Good afternoon, good afternoon," the wizard said, hurrying down the steps to greet them with excitement in front of the chalkboard. His hearty voice reached the far corners of the room. "My name is Jimbo Greengrass, but you all may call me Professor Green." He smiled to a few in turn and Gabrielle Charmant looked at him in an elegant, daring way. "I do tire of formalities from time to time, but make no mistake –" He looked at them with his piercing grey-blue eyes and many of the girls perked up. "When dealing with the Dark Arts it is crucial that we deal with magical formalities."

In a serious tone: "The Dark Arts," he paused for effect, "are toyed with by the most cunning and astute of wizards." Sev raised his head a little higher to listen. "That does not mean they are right to do so.

"The Dark Arts, ladies and gentlemen, are a _dangerous_ route of magic – and one often gets lost trying to find his way. _That_ is why I am here. To teach you to recognize and repel the Dark Arts with the greatest – and most basic – spells so that you may advance to become an even greater wizard or witch because of it."

He broke into a grin, "But we wouldn't want anybody getting lost in my class, now would we?" The class laughed and the spell was broken.

Many of the students sat back realizing they had leaned forward during his speech. Lily let out a breath and exchanged exhilarated looks with Sev.

"Now, let's take roll, shall we?" Professor Green surveyed the list he'd picked off his desk and began to call names.

Finishing attendance his eyes lifted from the page, mulling through the room. He slowly lowered the sheet. "Gryffindors and Slytherins, eh?" he mused rubbing a hand on his chin. "You've all heard the stories I'm sure . . ." Lily didn't know what he was talking about. He seemed to be speaking more to himself than the class.

"Everybody, look where you are sitting," he said quietly. They glanced around. "Stare at the person sitting next to you. You've all chosen someone from your own house – Do you see it?"

Lily and Sev smiled to each other; they alone hadn't.

"Because today is the beginning, and today only, I will ask that you sit by someone who is not of your house just so you may be introduced to at least one person outside of your circle." He gave a satisfied smile as if congratulating himself on the idea. "Come, come, everybody up!"

Students milled around, awkwardly looking for another of a different colored badge to sit with, and not looking too pleasant about it. Lily and Sev remained seated, and Professor Green winked at them with a big smile.

"Take a seat, any seat!" He was getting excited now, his voice boomed to the back corners. "I want everyone in this room to understand that _wizards are not stereotyped._ " He jumped up and paced with his enthusiasm, gesturing wildly as he went on. "Anyone can make a bad decision! Anyone can make a _good_ decision! It is the amount one allows oneself to dwell in unhealthy living conditions of the mind – And! Keep acting upon them. Dark wizards can come from any _place_ , good wizards can be any _one_.

"So!" He rubbed his hands together, the smack echoing across the room. "Now that we have that out of the way, do some quick introductions and we will begin the lesson. You have . . ." He contemplated, bobbing his head back and forth in thought, ". . . two minutes! Go!"

The room erupted with chatter and Sev's pallid face leaned in eagerly. "What do you think we'll learn?" He always had a quiet voice, but today it was emphasized with zealous interest. Lily shrugged and with a smile said, "I don't know, but I can't wait to start!"

As the room buzzed with chatter the young Professor approached their desks. He leaned in and said quietly, "I want to thank the two of you for giving an example of branching out." Greengrass's eyes gave a sparkle. "Five points to each of your Houses." And he walked away.

Lily and Sev exchanged looks. "You think he knows we knew each other before today?" Lily smirked, hardly able to contain her grin.

"Let's hope he doesn't find out," Sev said, cracking into a rare smirk himself. They glanced at each other and grinned even bigger.

Lily took the remaining time to acknowledge who sat with whom.

Alice paired with Jean Zarolf, who seemed to know each other before Hogwarts and chatted amiably. Juliet was with her friend Adrianna. Peter Pettigrew was with Gabrielle Charmant and was desperately trying not to stutter over his words, intimidated by her beauty. She did a good job of listening and pretending to be interested. Remus Lupin paired with Argon Avery, smiling painfully and trying to look neutral at whatever he had to say. An extra, Badru Smat of African heritage also joined Remus, who looked relieved to be released from his conversation with Avery. They conversed, pleasantly surprised by each other, and Badru even showed him an African beaded necklace under his shirt. Mary had made a beeline for Aldan Fletcher, a good looking boy, but because of the excess Slytherins was joined by a third. Louis Orgle sat on her right and kept trying to squeeze his opinion into the conversation and gain her attention. Potter held a flowing conversation with Akoya Abrams, a black girl with an appealing smile. The very posh and clean-cut Jay P. Baltazar was paired with Sirius Black, and they sat stoically with their chairs distanced apart.

"So!" Professor Greengrass said. "Time is up. Who can tell me what a Gytrash is and the simple spell used to repell it?"

He filled the rest of the class by telling them of dangerous and stirring encounters one might have in the real world, than went on to list some exotic and mystical creatures they would eventually learn to distinguish and repel.

The class left chattering loudly and they all seemed in concurrent of who their new favorite teacher was. Akoya Abrhams, Adrianna Hart, and Juliet Grand all agreed he was the most attractive teacher. Gabrielle walked with grace besides them, listening in silent agreement. Mary trotted up to them to share in the invigorating gossip but they seemed disinclined to let her tag along. She fell behind, disquieted, and walked with the other remaining Gryffindors.

Sev trotted along Lily teeming with excitement as his wobbly legs surged to keep up. "Did you hear the bit about the boggart?" he asked as the two slowed behind the group. "Imagine – knowing what everyone's worst fear would be," his eyes glinting.

"And who knew there was a spell for a _Tickling_ Charm? Magic is _weird_ ," Lily grinned. She had to angle her eyes down to Sev who was shorter than she.

"And 'old witches that eat children probably out of spite for being shunned from being too ugly,'" Sev quoted animatedly. The pair made eye contact and quoted in simultaneous guttural tones: " _Hags_ ," and burst out laughing.

Rounding a corner Lily couldn't help the smile, knowing that now she was at Hogwarts, magic could be practiced as much as she pleased. She would not get any nervous or weird looks for it. And for once, Lily realized, she hadn't thought of Tuney as she talked of magic. "It's great, isn't it," beamed Lily, "getting a new start."

"Yeah," Sev agreed, staring at Lucius walking in front of them. "A new start."

* * *

Lily wound her way down the stairs to lunch with her roommates Mary, Alice, and Juliet. Juliet Grand was extremely pretty for an eleven-year-old and came from old money. Her long redish-brown hair was tied in a ponytail. She was sore about being placed into Gryffindor - her friends she had grown up with were all in Ravenclaw or Slytherin. Mary McDonald had shoulder length blonde hair, green sparkly eyes and cute freckles that emphasized her bouncy personality. Alice Prewett was quiet with a sweet round face and dark hair tied back in a long braid.

They came around a bend and paused when they saw some burly looking third years speaking in hushed tones to Sirius Black.

Rather than wait Juliet went ahead of the girls to catch her friends.

The third years towered over Sirius, menacing and sour looks on their faces. He did not recoil or step back, but he seemed . . . uncertain.

"Oi!"

The green-clad group turned to find Gryffindor Potter, bundle of pluck that he was, sauntering toward them. He strolled with one hand in his pocket and the other raising to take a bite out of an apple. He stopped next to Sirius, a foot shorter than the third years and even a few centimeters below Black. He looked calculatingly at the third years and casually turned to Sirius. "I didn't know you started a charity foundation, Sirius," he said curiously.

Black looked questioningly at his friend.

"Well you must've, if you're opting to spend your time with them," he motioned with his head to the Slytherins without looking up. They glowered down at him.

"Listen, you flower-eyed pillock–" one of the burlier ones began.

"Boys," came a smooth, commanding voice. Another member joined the party and the third years took a step back in respect. Lily recognized him as the blonde fifth year, Lucius. His prefect badge caught the light as he came to a halt in front of them.

"I'm sure there are other ways of showing your displeasure in Mister Black here," he said silkily. His hard eyes gleamed as they landed on the Gryffindor first year. "We wouldn't want the _little blood_ traitor to think he isn't welcome in Hogwarts." His grey eyes glinted. "Why, I have it under good authority, that he won't have any other home to go back to." His smile deepened. "Enjoy your time here, Black. You may want to keep one eye over your shoulder." His smile slackened looking up at the third years as if their petulance was inferior to his time.

He motioned with his head. "Get a move on. You'll be late for class," he said it with a slight sneer and they vanished. Then, distracted, his gaze look around his surroundings with great dislike, eyeing the pupils as if they were below his tastes.

Upturning his nose one last time to Potter and Black, he drawled, "Get a move on, _Gryffindors_ ," and glided away.

Lily exchanged glances with Mary and Alice.

"I heard all of Black's family was Slytherin," she said, "on the way up here. I didn't know it'd be such a big deal."

Alice nodded. "Some magical families have old blood they think outweighs all the rest. There are just names people know, you know? The Grands, Baltazars, Potters, Malfoys . . . . My family dates back ages but my parents don't care about any of that.

"What about you Mary?"

"I'm a half-blood, so clearly my folks don't care. My aunties on the other hand . . ."

They continued to lunch but it wasn't long before they heard some Slytherin third years mysteriously burst into boils a few days later. . .

End of Year One.


	2. 2 Year Two

**AN: Hey guys! I forgot to mention that the scenes will be pretty short clips just to get the gist of what's going on until Lily and James' stories truly combine. There will be another Year Two chapter with more Jily stuff, but this one is strictly Marauder content.**

 **I hope you enjoy it, and please review!**

Year Two

James' POV

"Don't you think it's weird?"  
"Wha?" Peter asked through a mouth stuffed with turkey. It was lunch time in the Great Hall and the boys had relative privacy because of the chatter.

"That Lupin keeps disappearing every few weeks? His mum can't be _that_ ill, she'd have died already!"

Peter looked at James skeptically but didn't comment.

"Okay, fine. What do you think Sirius?" James turned to him instead.

"Huh?" Sirius tore his eyes away from Ajita Rubbi sitting at the Ravenclaw table. "What?"

"She's fit," James nodded in approval. "But back to Remus."

"Super weird," Sirius nodded. "What d'you think he's really up to?"

"Why do you think he's up to something?" Peter asked.

"Don't be thick, Peter. Of _course_ he's up to something," James said. He rubbed his hands together. "We just have to know what."

"I say we follow him." Sirius took a bite of roll and stared again at the Ravenclaw table.

James' eyes danced with mischief. "And I have just the thing."

* * *

James whipped off the cloak once they were safely inside their dorm room.

"I can't believe it."

"Me neither!"

"Oh Merlin, I'm going to be sick."

"He's a - !"

" _I know!_ "

"Did you see his fangs?" James said. " _Wicked_."

"Those _claws_." Sirius agreed. "Love to whip some of those out when I need 'em. Maybe scare old Snivellus with them." He rubbed his hands together mischievously and James chuckled.

The three had just gotten back from their alarming yet thrilling discovery. Peter was pale and kept clutching his stomach. "You don't think his transformations are that bad every month, do you?" He shuddered, remembering Remus' skin being torn off by Remus himself.

James furrowed his eyebrows. "You know, I dunno. Maybe they are . . ."

"That's awful . . . " Peter whimpered.

"Hey, maybe there's something we can do for him. Y'know, to help," James suggested.

Sirius snorted. "Like what? Get bit?"

"I'm serious. Maybe there's something we can do."

Sirius looked at him skeptically. "We don't know anything _about_ werewolves James."

James thought for a minute, pacing. He mused his hair. "A-ha!" He whipped around causing the other two to jump.

"What?" Peter asked timidly.

"Let's sneak into the library into the Restricted Section and dig up what we can about werewolves."

Sirius sat up in his bed, catching on. "And figure out a way to help him," he said excitedly. "Maybe we can, I dunno, go with him or something."  
"Or maybe we can cure him - nobody's done that before!"

Peter looked between the two.

"C'mon, let's go!"

James held out the cloak once more and the other two followed. By the time Remus Lupin returned to his dorm the next day, tired and sickly pale, his three roommates had concocted a plan.

The door slowly opened to reveal the three hunched over on Sirius's bed with books spread across it. They all looked up and stopped talking when they saw him.

Remus paused. "What?" he asked apprehensively.

Sirius and James exchanged a look and split into grins.

* * *

"RUN!" James shouted. The Charms Room exploded in gold and red smoke. Colored feathers poured out of the room along with the paint-stained first years. They coughed and sputtered, choking on feathers and smoke.

"MR. POTTER! MR. BLACK!"

"Uh-oh." Sirius and James screeched to a halt in front of Professor McGonagall, who seemingly appeared out of nowhere. She looked at them down her glasses so sternly James thought they might crack. He hid one hand behind his back and chuckled nervously.

"H-Hey Professor -"

"Mister Potter!" McGonagall barked and the boys jumped. "Do you care to tell me what just happened?"  
James gave a nervous grin. "First year prank?"

McGonagall narrowed her eyes.  
"And it wouldn't have anything to do with the Quidditch game against Ravenclaw tomorrow, would it? Seeing as a group of Ravenclaw first years are now painted red and gold?"

Sirius stuck his hands in his pockets. "Might have something to do with that, your honor."

McGonagall gave him a look and said, "Ten points each and an evening of detention. As it is poor Professor Flitwick whose class was ruined, you can serve it with him."

Professor Flitwick was the last out of class, sputtering and sporting a beard that was half red and half gold.

"Nice of you to show your sportsmanship, Professor," James grinned. His smile dropped when he saw McGonagall's expression. "You're lucky the team needs you, Mister Potter," McGonagall said. "I have half a mind to schedule your detention during the match."

"But Professor!"

"Professor, you can't!"

McGonagall held up her hand for silence.

"Seeing as it would be a shame to let down our captain again after Mister Patil needed replacing," she said, "I will not do that. _But be warned."_ She started to turn away, paused, then looked once more at James.

"What is behind your back, Mister Potter?"

"Nothing" Sirius and James said hastily.

McGonagall raised an eyebrow and held out her hand.

They shared a grimacing look and James revealed the Snitch clutched in his hand behind his back.

"I was going to put it back . . ." James muttered.

McGonagall cast her eyes heavenward. " _Why_ am I surprised? You're a bunch of meandering marauders, the lot of you." She took the Snitch and turned on her heels, her skirts swooshing behind her.

Sirius frowned. "How'd she get here so fast? It's like she knew where we were. Wish we could do that. Eyes like a hawk, that one."

James stuck his hands in his pockets and kicked a fallen feather. "Let's go find the others," he said.

It didn't take them long - Remus was studying in the library and sitting across from him was a disgruntled Peter, scratching out lines every so often and looking down hopelessly at his parchment.

Sirius plopped down next to Remus. "You lot going to be in here all day?"

Remus glanced up from his writing. "Some of us study."

James took the other seat and smirked. "Some of us don't have to."

Remus stuck out his tongue.

"Oh come on, Lupin, you should've come. You know you enjoyed it last week when we rearranged the Hufflepuff's furniture," Sirius coaxed. Remus smiled a little.

"Or caused the Slytherin's couch to sting them every time someone sat down," James added.

Peter smiled wistfully at the memory. "That was the craziest thing I've ever done," he said. James and Sirius grinned.

"Care for another adventure?" Sirius asked.

Remus hesitated.

"Suppose I am . . . What would we be doing?"

"Here's what we're thinking," Sirius leaned in close. "We need to figure out how to get into the Ravenclaw common room. It's the only one left."

"And then during the game you lot decorate their common room to red and gold," James added.

"But how do we get in?" Peter asked.

"Easy," James shrugged. "Follow someone under the cloak. That's how Sirius and I found out how to get into Slytherin."

"Bloody useful, that," Sirius commented.

"How'd you get into Hufflepuff? Same way?" Peter asked.

James snorted. "Like you need to be sneaky to get into Hufflepuff. They might as well have a banner that says Enter Here: All Visitors Welcome."

"We've got to keep track of this somehow," Peter said. "Maybe we should write some of it down."

"No that's too obvious," Remus finally joined the conversation and James and Sirius exchanged knowing smirks.

"Oh yeah?" James asked. "What do you suggest? You're the brains of this operation."

Remus thought about it for a minute. "How 'bout a map?"

"A _map?"_ Sirius echoed. "Why'd we create a map? Anyone could snatch it. It's the same as writing it down, isn't it?"

"An invisible map," James eye sparkled at the possibility.

"Great," Sirius rolled his eyes. "And how do you propose we read this invisible map?"

"No, no, it's a real thing. I've heard my dad talk about this at work," James continued. "They have invisible ink, see? It just came out. An incantation makes it appear."

"But where would we get it?" Sirius asked.

"We order it saying we're Professor Slughorn or something, they'll send it for a teacher."

"Could this actually work?"

"What's the incantation?"

"Let's do it!" said Peter.

James eyed all three of them, a slow grin spreading across his face. "Mates," he said, "I think we're on to something."

"We need a name," Sirius blurted out. "Something that goes with 'map.' The Meddlers?"

"Ehh . . ."

"The Moppers!" Peter piped up. "'Cause we mop up the competition! . . . What?" He shrunk at the other's reaction.

"The ' _Moppers._ '" James deadpanned.

"Well . . . What've you got?"

James turned to Lupin.

"Say, Remus, what's a 'marauder?'"


	3. 3 Year Two

**AN: Hey guys! Thanks for reading. Sorry if there's any wonky formatting with this one, i wrote is mostly on my phone. I wanted to still update even though I am traveling, so there you are. Wonky editing, but a chapter to read.**

 **Enjoy and review please! I'd love to hear some feedback.**

Lily's POV

"He's doing it again."

"I _know_ ," Lily hissed, adding rat tails to their Hair Raising concoction. They were in potions (Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs) and Mary kept glancing over to where Black and Potter sat. Black was prodding the fire with his wand to adjust its temperature and Potter throwing surreptitious glances to Lily.

"Pass me that ginger root," muttered Lily as she added the last tail. Mary handed over the ingredient and Lily examined it low in her seat; any excuse to keep her head down and pretend she didn't notice Potter.

"Have to be crushed more properly . . ." she murmured to herself. She reached across Mary to grab the cutting board and set to work.

"Is he still doing it?" She asked with eyes intently on the root.

"Yup."

"Has he looked away?"

"Once, but he's staring again."

Lily sighed and straightened in her seat to add the crushed ginger and the Hair-Raising potion fizzled green. The moment she dropped the last piece in the boiling pot she turned and glared at James.

He split into a grin, not the least bit embarrassed, and went back to cutting with that smile.

Sighing again, Lily went back to work.

Potter kept his eyes on his work and when he thought it was safe, glanced again at Lily. Black waited for the ingredient and kicked Potter under the table.

"Ten-till already?"

Lily sat back quickly as Professor Horace Slughorn looked at the watch on his wrist, caterpillar eyebrows raised. Standing, he stretched his arms and said, "Well. Let's have a look at these potions, shall we?" and a stifled gasp came from the back corner of the room.

He started to walk through the aisles and survey each potion's progress. Some of the students, like Terrance Jarcoll and Peter Pettigrew, were hastily stuffing whatever ingredients remained. Black and Potter glanced into their cauldron and shrugged to each another.

"Galloping Godric!" yelped Slughorn, drawing back at the sight of Marigold Good's outrageously large blonde hair reaching beyond her partner's workspace. "I think your potion works _too_ well, Miss Good," he said with a bounce of his toes and waggling his finger.

"I don't see a difference." said Sirius loudly.

A few chortles echoed the room and Marigold grinned, rolling her eyes good-naturedly. She was known for her bushy blonde hair and kind disposition.

Horace Slughorn paused to peer into Lily's cauldron. "Well done, Miss Evans. Yes . . . well done." He bounced on his toes once more and his walrus mustache twitched with his smile. His eyes twinkled before he shuffled away.

She beamed.

Next was Charms, and a very familiar scenario ensued.

"Do you know Potter's ogling you?" Alice Prewett asked.

She had not been sure she had heard right over the scuttling of mice feet – but sure enough, there sat James Potter, eyeing her while lazily bouncing his mouse in the air by the tip of his wand.

As soon as Lily turned her head towards him, he pretended to be focusing on his mouse.

Black sat next to him speaking to Ajita Rubbi and shooting annoyed looks at Hank Crawford, who kept interrupting. Hank was known to have a shrewed disposition and annoying opinions he treid to press into everyone else. Next to them sat Remus whose mouse was immobilized except for the tail. He was gently explaining to Pettigrew how to freeze his own mouse.

Lily turned back to her work and cast a perfect immobulus on her mouse – the first in the class to do so.

"Yes, Miss Evans, yes! A beautiful charm!" piped tiny Professor Flitwick who was standing on a stack of books so he could see his class.

From the corner of her eye Lily saw Potter eye her work and then her; he seemed disgruntled that she had turned her attentions away from him.

A few more minutes passed as he started bouncing his mouse in irritation, and than with each passing moment fueled it with more aggression. In the end the poor creature hit the ceiling and flailed into the corner of the room. He sighed and stood to fetch it.

"Why does he keep doing that?" Lily muttered from the corner of her mouth. She un-froze her mouse to continue practicing.

Alice quirked her head. "Snape stares all the time, and you don't seem to mind."

"Sev doesn't 'ogle' me."

"He does," Mary quipped. "A lot. Kinda creepy."

"Well . . ." Lily tried to think of what to say. "Sev and I are friends. Potter and I aren't."

Mary and Alice exchanged looks.

"What?" said Lily.

Mary gave her a deadpanned stare. "Lily. You know why they stare."

Lily shifted uncomfortabley. Before she could respond, Flitwick called for the end of class.

"Keep pracitisng! And well done to those of you who have made progress."

Lily gathered her books and swept out of the room, concentrating on not making eye contact with a certain brown-haired boy.

* * *

"You going to say that again, Snape?"

"Why, are you as deaf as you are obnoxious? I doubt a person could have that many flaws."

"Sev!" Lily said.

Just as they raised their wands Madame Pomfrey walked into the room and gasped.

"What on earth are you doing! Dueling near my sick patient?" She grabbed them each by their ears and started hauling them out the door as they cried with pain. "I don't care if you are trying to impress the lady, do it elsewhere!"

Lily started with the door slamming shut. Lupin shifted awkwardly in his sick bed.

"Boys," Lily sighed.

"I take offense to that."

"Same here," Sirius said.

"Right. Sorry Remus..."

"So I'm invisible, am I? Great."

Lily pursed her lips at Black. He and Peter were sitting on either side of Remus' bed, playing cards sprawled across the blanket. James and the Gryffindor boys had been attending to Remus' sick bed when Sev and Lily had entered to get a headache potion for Mary.

Madame Pomphrey re-entered, wiping her hands as if just putting out the trash. (And in some ways, Lily thought, she had.)

"I'll get that potion for you, Miss Evans. It may take me a minute, I need to check my charts." Madame Pomphrey swept into her office.

"How're you doing Remus? You weren't at dinner."

Remus shifted uncomfortabley. "I, uhm, I'm not feeling well."

Lily didn't press the topic.

"I heard Christian Abbott got thrashed by the Willow. Did you see him in here?"

Remus shook his head. "Must've been dismissed before I arrived."

"Rad, isn't it?" Lily asked.

"What?"

"The Willow. Why d'you think they planted it? At the Welcoming Feast last year Dumbledore said they only just planted it and we'd do well not to go near it."

Sirius, Remus and Peter exchanged looks. Remus paused and gave the impression he was choosing his next words with delicacy. "Yes, it does seem rather strange they put it there. But, there are a lot of strange things here at Hogwarts, don't you think? So . . . why question this one?"

"Well yes, but why wouldn't they plant it as a sapling?" Lily asked sitting on the edge of Lupin's bed. Sirius had to grab his cards quickly before she sat on them. He made a face. "Oops, sorry."

"Maybe . . . it's for protection purposes," Sirius said. Remus shot him a look. "From anything that might sneak in from the forest? I hear it can move."

"But that wouldn't be very logical. It's only one tree, even if it can move, the forest stretches on for ages. It can't reach that far."

"Perhaps they have a rodent problem or gnomes in the area," Remus said, keeping his face impassive.

"Or what if the tree was enchanted to instantly repair itself and used for firewood?" Peter said.

"Firewood?" Lily said doubtfully. "Well, I s'pose sending people into the Forbidden Forest with snow on the ground doesn't come across as a popular idea . . . Sounds scary."

"Oh! Maybe they're using it for medical research of some kind!" Remus said, looking quite pleased with himself. "I bet that's it. I'm sure Professor Sprout would tell us in Herbology if we asked."

Lily nodded. That scenario made a lot more sense than anything else they'd come up with.

"Here's your potion, Miss Evans." Madame Promphrey handed Lily a medium sized vial. "My regards to Miss McDonald. Let her know if she needs anything, I'll be right here."

Lily nodded and thanked the nurse.

"See you lot 'round. Feel better Remus." Lily waved and exited, looking for Sev .

* * *

Lily entered breakfast on Halloween to find the Hall abuzz with chatter. Clusters of people gathered around whoever had newspapers. Owls hooted and circled ahead in the chaos. Not a single person sat and ate, everyone was at somebody's side.

"What is it?" she asked. "What's going on?"

Mary craned her neck to see. "I don't know," she said. Alice led the way to Frank, someone she'd grown up with in the magical community, and who was holding a newspaper.

"Frank?" Alice asked, "What's going on?" Frank was a third year, and most of the kids surrounding him were pupils Lily didn't recognize. One she did, however, was Sirius Black.

"It's bad, Al." Frank looked up and Sirius looked grim. "He struck again. This time . . . Well . . ." Frank handed the newspaper to Alice. She held it open for the girls to see.

It portrayed black hooded figures with masks disappearing from above the Muggle Ministry of Magic and a smokey symbol was displayed in the sky. It was a skull with a snake protruding from the mouth, twisting and turning darkly in the night. The headline read:

THE DARK LORD STRIKES AGAIN!

His Name Is Cursed In More Ways Than One

WARNING TO THE READER: By order of the Ministry, NO ONE is to read the following article aloud. 

The Dark Lord attacked at midnight on the Muggle Ministry, murdering 12 Muggles, one undercover wizard, and injuring more than thirty. The attack happened while the wizarding security detail was debriefing the Muggle Minister on the previous pureblood riot at the Squib Rights March last Friday and spoke the name "Voldemort." It appears The Dark Lord has put a curse on his name which now summons Death Eaters to the site of whoever spoke it. No less than 17 incidents have happened in the last six and a half hours, four of those resulting in attacks and two more dead with numbers rising. The Ministry is panicked over the chaos and all aurors have been working relentlessly since the first attack at midnight. "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named" continues to terrorize and attack Muggles and all those who sympathize with Muggles, Magical or not.

"It's madness . . . " said Prime Minister Eugenia Jenkins, who seemed at a loss for words in the wake of this tragic event. After some time Minister Jenkins ordered that "No one is to say his name. Make sure the people know. They can't say his name . . ." (ctn on page 2)

The article continued and Lily skimmed for any new information. She remembered that the Muggle Minister's Head of Security had disappeared for two weeks during the summer. The position was traditionally held by an undercover wizard. The paper suggested he was possibly under the Imperius curse and summoned Voldemort on purpose to make a statement for the first incident of speaking his name since the curse was put on.

Alice looked at Frank. Everyone was quiet. Lily looked at Sirius. He was staring at the photo with a dead look in his eyes. She wondered if he could identify any of the Death Eaters as his family members.

The rest of the day passed abysmally. Parents were writing to their kids to tell them of the news, students tersely awaited answers if their families were some of the attacked, and others to hear about their parents working relentlessly in the Ministry.

Dumbledore gave a speech at dinner that Lily could barely focus on. Something about dark times and banding together. Food tasted bland. Everybody was a ghost of their usual self.

Although Lily's family was not one of the affected, one thing was clear: things were changing


	4. 4 Year Three

**AN: Resubmitting because most of my edits didn't make it in. Sorry about that!**

 **AN: Hi guys! Sorry, I was hoping to get this chapter up yesterday, and then this morning, and then this afternoon . . . You get the idea. What can I say, I'm a new mom and things are busy with relatives at the Holidays. I literally had to finish typing this chapter in the bathroom to get it done. TMI? Probably so, but feel loved 'cause I wanted to upload that badly. Enjoy and review por favor!**

 **And if you're from the US, then Happy Thanksgiving!**

Chapter 4: Year Three

Lily's POV

"He's such a fox."

"Agreed," Alice nodded solemnly. "Marco de Amore is unattainable."

"I'd like to get him upstairs, if you know what I mean."

"Mare!"

"Well it's true . . ." Mary said. "Honestly, most of those Ravenclaw boys are just delish. Antoine Cantu, Rhys Abermann, Julius Sehs?" Mary ticked off her fingers. "They're all so noble looking and handsome to the max. Rhys is okay, but the other three are so yummy. The only one that's not is Hank, and he's annoying in both looks and personality."

Lily covered her giggle and threw a pillow at Mary. "Hey! That's not very nice."

"It's true."

"I never said it wasn't true." Lily said, giggling again. She settled into her pillow at the foot of her bed, staring at the other two. The soft moonlight caressed the setting. The only one missing was Juliet, who, as per usual, spent as little time with the other girls as possible to hang out with her other friends.

"I'd say Jay Baltazar is in the same category," Lily said. "but he's too standoffish."

"That's 'cause he's actually noble. Didn't you know?" said Mary. Lily shook her head. "His father is a nobleman. They have like, a mini castle in Germany or something."

Lily scoffed. "Well he sure acts like he has a castle. Way too stuck up for my taste."

"Alright, Alice," Mary said, popping a candy into her mouth. "Who would you want to ask you to Hogsmeade?"

Alice thought for a minute. "Well if you've taken all the Ravenclaws . . ."

Mary threw a pillow at her and laughed.

"Mmm, probably Kevin Rhinehart or Christian Abbott."

"A Hufflepuff girl, are you?"

Lily wiggled her eyebrows. "And an older man. Christian is a fourth year. "

"He's a chaser for the team, isn't he?" Mary asked.

"Yup," Lily said. "And very agile, I hear." The girls giggled again.

"What about you, Lily? Unless you're already going with greasy head."

"Hey! Sev is nice."

Mary rolled her eyes. "Sure. Maybe if he took a shower every once in a while . . ."

"Mary!"

"I'm just saying!"

Lily pursed her lips.

"C'mon, Lily, spill," Mary ordered. "It's been years of the two of you as 'best friends.'"

"Do you really not like him?" Alice inquired.

Lily shifted uncomfortably. "No."

"What about James?" Mary asked mischievously.

Lily rolled her eyes. "Gee, haven't been asked that one before. No, okay? Potter is just so . . . pig-headed. He's arrogant and taunts me for fun. I don't even think he really likes me," she said. "I think he does it 'cause he knows it riles me up and makes Sev angry."

Especially the last one, Lily thought. Though she was certain of her feelings toward Sev, she was starting to think . . . Well . . . Maybe they weren't so mutual.

"Mm, but that Sirius Black though," Mary said with a devious smile.

Alice grinned and nodded.

Juliet entered then, with her usual chin held proudly and her long hair cascading down her shoulders.

"Hey Juliet," Lily greeted. Juliet returned the hello.

"Hey Jules," Mary said, sitting up. "Who would you want to take you to Hogsmeade?"

Juliet hesitated and a soft blush appeared on her cheeks. "Julius Sehs," she said, smiling. Her cheeks burned brighter.

"Juliet and Julius?" Alice giggled.

"I know," Juliet heaved a sigh and rolled her eyes. She sat on her bed. "I don't know if I love it or hate it."

"I like it," Lily said decidedly. "I think it sounds cute."

"Marco de Amore is also pretty fit," Juliet said thoughtfully.

The three girls groaned. "Ugh! We know."

* * *

Lily's quill hopped out of her grip for the umpteenth time. "Will you stop it?" She swiped again for the quill and it danced just out of reach.

"Gee, Lilyflower, I thought you liked annoying things. Isn't that why you hang out with old Snevelley?"

"It's Evans, to you," she retorted, narrowing her green eyes. "And Sev isn't the annoying one! The pea-brained twit who pesters me is!"

James gave her a toothy grin. "I know you don't really mean that."

"Oh I do," she said wholeheartedly.

"We could take this outside, Red. I know you want to get me under the mistletoe." It was December, and part of the Christmas magic was mistletoe appearing above any couple when one of them thought of kissing the other.

"In your dreams, Potter."

"Oh, you know they are."

She pulled at her red flaming hair in frustration after the quill jumped away again. "UGH! Just put it back!"

"As you wish," said James. He flicked his wand with a bit of a flare and it stood stock still over her paper.

Lily swiped at it. It was stuck to the parchment. No matter how much she pulled it stayed cemented to the parchment and the parchment to the desk.

"UGH!"

"Is there a problem, you two?" Professor Flitwick looked over his spectacles at them.

"No, Professor -"

"Yes, Professor -" they said simultaneously.

"Well sort it out." Flitwick gave an airy wave of his wand. "Otherwise I'll reassign you."

"I wish he would reassign me," Lily grumbled just loud enough for James to hear. She pulled at her quill harder this time and subtlety James whispered the incantation. Because of her force, the quill flew across the room. Lily glared at James, cheeks flushing.

"Go get it." She ordered, pointing.

"Don't fancy it."

"Potter!"

James shook his head and leaned back casually in his hair to study his nails.

"Professor," Lily raised her hand. "Can I please be reassigned?"

Professor Flitwick looked at James and sighed. "Yes, Miss Evans. Switch with Mister Crawford."

"What?" Hank whined. Sirius, who was his partner, was positively elated.

James looked sour.

After she gathered her things, Lily pointed her wand at James' quill and whispered something. It pointed at him and blasted him with magical ink, spraying over his face and clothes.

Lily smirked. "That was for messing with my quill." She smiled sweetly and left.

Huffing, she sat next to Black and turned to him. "Jinx my things, and you die."

Sirius smirked. "I don't need to jinx you to get your attention." He winked saucily. Lily rolled her eyes but smiled all the same. Black wasn't so bad. Sometimes he was just as annoying (or more) when he was with Potter, but usually when she was paired with him one on one he toned down his obnoxious level. Unlike the said miscreant she just left - James Potter toned down his obnoxious level for no one, least of all Lily.

"Okay everyone, that's enough review," Professor Flitwick squeaked. "Let's get to practising. I want to see what you've accomplished over the weekend." He lined up everyone up in the middle of the room and moved the desks by magic. With another flick of his wand, the candles went out and shades drew over the window. There was only minimal light in the room. "Now, Miss Beaumont, Mister Pettigrew, let's see what you've got."

Feet shuffled and the two moved to the center.

"Lumos duo!" A light shone on Peter who froze like a deer in headlights. He moved around and the light followed. The spell connected the light from a wand to the target.

"Very good Miss Beaumont!" Maura beamed.

"Now you Mister Pettigrew." Maura's wandlight went out, and Peter stumbled over the words of the incantation, making dancing lights appear on the ceiling.

"Groovy," someone whispered in Lily's ear, making her jump. She turned expecting to see Potter, but it was Black over her shoulder.

"Care to dance, Evans?"

Lily gave him a curious look.

"Mister Black! Miss Evans! You next!" Lily shuffled forward and they both successfully performed the spell.

"Now," Flitwick pipped, "this time, I want you, Miss Evans, to hide. Somewhere in the room. Anywhere will do! And Mister Black will concentrate, imagining his target Miss Evans in his mind, and cast the charm once more. You will see, students, how the spell follows Miss Evans as she tries to evade the light. If Mister Black successfully casts the charm, she will not be able to. Her job will be to try to shake him once the spell is cast. It takes concentration during the spell to hold it, not just as you say the words.

"You have ten seconds, Miss Evans. Go!"

He cast a glowing countdown in the center of the room and Lily squealed, scurrying behind desks to find a good spot. Most students moved out of her way, but a few like Hank and Potter tried to block her. She tried to push past him and he moved in front again.

"Move Potter or I'll make you," she whispered fiercely.

"Promise?"

"I can hear you Evans!" Sirius called. Five seconds.

"Eep!" She pushed past James and ducked under some legs behind a desk in the corner where the room was darkest.

"THREE, TWO, ONE!" the class chanted.

"Lumos duo!" roared Sirius. A blinding spotlight landed on the desk Lily hid beneath. She was betrayed by her legs showing underneath. "Gotcha!"

She took off. Students moved aside as she darted past. Everywhere she ran, the light followed.

"You can't hide!" Sirius taunted playfully. She just couldn't shake him! In a desperate attempt, Lily twirled around and cast the lumos duo charm in return. The light blinded Sirius enough to distract him and the beam faltered. Lily got away.

Cheers erupted. "Well, done, Miss Evans! Well done!" Professor Flitwick said excitedly. The lights came back on. Lily grinned as several people thumped her back, still cheering. Sirius gave her a nod from across the room.

"Alright everyone!" the little professor pipped. "Let's line up and do it again! Ten points to you, Miss Evans for an inspired evasive tactic, and another five for Mister Black."

Everyone scurried to the center, eager to give it a go.

The rest of the class passed joivally as they ducked around one another casting spells and turning it into mini duel fights. There was lots of laughter and applause and it was clearly one of the best lessons they'd had all year.

Grinning, Lily exited when it was through and Sirius was close behind. They talked of their demonstration and strategy. "I have to admit, that was pretty great, Black," Lily said.

Sirius grinned and it was rather dashing. "Up until you blinded me it was pretty easy. All I had to do was think of you." He winked and sauntered off.

Lily furrowed her brows in confusion and noticed something shimmering above her that had not been there before.

It was mistletoe.


	5. 5 Year Three

**AN: Hi guys! PLEASE, please,** ** _please_** **review! Thanks to powerofthename for your review of chapter 2!**

 **Everything you don't recognize belongs to JKR. :)**

Chapter 5: Year Three

James' POV

James stared at the back of her red hair, the mistletoe growing above her. Sirius' figure retreated. It felt like someone had suckered punched him and time was frozen on this moment.

She liked Sirius? _Sirius?_

James took off in the other direction. He knew Sirius had detention tonight, and typically he should be spending dinner with him. But no way was he going to catch up to his best friend now. _Ex_ -best friend as far as he was concerned. He bumped into some first years.

"Oi! Watch it," a brave kid said to him. He seemed feisty; kind of like a small James.

James glowered with his wand out and said, " _You_ watch it, small-fry."

The first years grumbled but shuffled away. Because he was pissed, and because that kid was a punk and needed to put in his place, James muttered a spell to tie his shoelaces together as they left, but it just missed and got a fifth year. He tripped and his three buddies turned menacingly to James.

 _Excellent,_ he thought.

He could use a good fight.

* * *

James Potter, thirteen and sulking, showed up to detention none the wiser. After taking on four fifths years and putting one of them in the Hospital Wing he still had an itch that just hadn't been scratched.

She liked Sirius.

 _Sirius_.

His best mate. And not him. Not even greasy, smelly Snape! Why'd it have to be Sirius? Even Remus was a better scenario inside his head, though the thought of her liking anybody else made him queasy.

But why's it have to be _Sirius?_

"Scrubbing dishes . . ." Filch muttered as he led the way. "Why in my day, we hung 'em by their thumbs. In the dungeon! I miss the old days . . ."

James had heard it a million times. He kicked a loose stone, hands in his pocket, and face sullen.

"Well," Filch smacked his lips. "Here we are then. You'll not be using magic. You know the drill. Told the elves not clean a single dish. I'll be back at midnight. _If_ you're done by then you lot can go."

James didn't pay his words any attention. He kicked open the door and stocked in. Inside he found —-

"Hey, mate," Sirius grinned. He stood by the sink, sleeves rolled to his elbows, hands sudded as he wiped a dish. "Missed you at dinner." James just stared. He hated the stupid grin on his stupid friend's face. Sirius, turning back to the dish, continued. "Heard what happened though. Shame about Arnold's elbows switching arms, eh? Wicked bit of Transfiguration —- wish I'd seen it."

Sirius looked up at James' silence to find him glowering. Wordlessly, James marched over to the sink _opposite_ the room of Sirius and got to work. Knowing something was wrong - because James always shared in a good joke (especially when he had bragging rights) and because they _always_ work side by side - Sirius furrowed his brows.

"You alright?"

"Fine," he said shortly. He grabbed some dishes and started scrubbing. There were literally over a thousand dishes, platters, and goblets laid out before them, in teetering stacks from the floor to the ceiling. Most still had left overs on them, some with half-chewed chicken drums, and others with what looked like food chewed and spit back out. It was disgusting, and a huge amount of work for the two of them. If they worked till next Sunday it still probably wouldn't be enough time.

"You sure about that?"

"Just peachy," James said through gritted teeth, scrubbing a burnt pot with all he had.

After a short pause: "Oookay . . ." Sirius turned back to his sink. Halfway through cleaning the dish he glanced at James' back. "Did you like the idea Pete had for the map?"  
"Yes."

"Did you do any research for it?"

"Did _you?_ " he didn't know why this set him off, but James' blood started to boil.

"Nooo, I've been _here_ . . ." Sirius explained like he was talking to a five year old.

"Well maybe you should be where you _should_ be and not where you shouldn't be," James said tersely.

Sirius looked at him bizarrely . " _What?_ I can't even begin to understand that."

James glared at his pot, which was well beyond clean at this point. He determinedly focused on _not_ looking at his ex-best friend. "I _mean_ , that maybe you should stay away from things that aren't yours."

Sirius furrowed his brows. "Wait - is this about the snitch I borrowed from your trunk after you knicked it from the quidditch supplies again?" he asked incredulously. "I'll put it back."

James hunched his shoulders. "Maybe," he said gruffly. "But if it _is_ , than maybe you shouldn't be playing with things that aren't yours." The pot was _definitely_ clean now, but James scrubbed like he had a point to prove.

"Well it's not like it's yours either," Sirius pointed out.

"Well maybe it could be!" James countered. "If people didn't keep messing with what's mine!"

Sirius threw down his dish in the sink with a _clang!_ "Alright! That's it! What the hell is wrong with you? What are you going on about? It's just a stupid snitch."

James threw down the pot as well. "What the hell is wrong with _you?_ "

" _Nothing's_ wrong with me! I'm not the one who's acting like a prat!" Sirius spat.

James barked out a laugh, "Oh - Oh! So _I'm_ the prat then? _I'm_ the problem here?"

"Yes, _you're_ the bloody problem," said Sirius. "Now stop brooding like a girl and tell me what it is so I can tell you can get over it. Than we can finish these _stupid_ -"

 _Bonk!_ The soap hit Sirius in the head. After a second of processing, Sirius looked at James and roared, lunging, and the two rolled over. Dishes toppled over, and James got in a good punch. Sirius pulled James' back by the hair and managed to pry him off with the clatter of a hundred dishes crashing to the floor. Food dirtied their robes, as well as soap and pumpkin juice.

" _What did you say to her?_ " James said in a strained voice, rolling his ex-friend onto his back and grabbing him by the robes. Mashed potatoes was in his messy hair, giving him a wild look.

"To _who?_ You're barking!" Sirius socked him and managed to scramble to his feet.

"EVANS," James roared, kicking up soap. He panted. "I _saw_ you, Sirius. You were being," he gestured wildly, " _you_. _Flirting_. And I saw her. She looked at you, and mistletoe grew."

They stared at each other. Sirius was quiet.

James glared. " _What_. Happened."

Sirius started and stopped a couple of times. Eventually he kicked some dishes and they shattered.

"I don't _know_ , alright!? I can't help it! I mean - _You_ can't!"

James looked bewildered. "Wai - what?"

"Evans! She's alright! Alright? She's . . . I don't, know, she's fit! I tried to -"

James held up a hand to stop him. "Wait." He took a second to process this. "You - _You_ like Lily?"

Sirius looked confused and like James was stupid. "Isn't that what you just - ?"

" _NO_ ," James said. "I thought _she_ \- ?"

Sirius cut him off with a shake of his head. He shuffled his feet and looked down guiltily. "I . . . I have for a while now . . ." James couldn't believe what he was hearing. "I just . . . I couldn't help it mate. I thought - _maybe_ . . . " He shuffled his feet and finally braved a look at James. "You would be okay -"

" _Okay?_ OKAY?" James had a crazed look in his eye. "AFTER THREE YEARS? After _everything?_ After Valentine's presents, and pranks, and Snape and after _everything?"_

"I thought -"

"You thought! You though _what_ , exactly?" James stared with hatred in his eyes. "That I would just be ' _okay'_ with it? With _you?_ " He glared. Sirius opened his mouth stubbornly then thought better of it. "Well I'm _not_. And you're not going near her." Sirius narrowed his eyes as if he dared James to try and stop him and James gave him a disgusted look.

"We're done here, Sirius," James said, turning away. Some sauce dripped from his robes and dozens of dishes lay broken on the floor from their brawl. "Forget this. Forget you, man. I'm outta here." He held up his hands to signify he was done, and walked away.


	6. 6 Year Three

**Hey guys! Thanks for being patient, I really mean to post weeks ago but stuff kept happening. Sickness, traveling, heater breaking, baby shots, the works. I'm not too pleased for how this one ends, I feel like it could use a little something more, but I hope you like what I do have! I came up with a lot of good ideas for later on in the story, so that's good. :)**

 **R &R if you please. :) **

Chapter 6: Year Three

Lily's POV

"Come _on_ , Sev," Lily hauled her sour looking friend out of the library towards the fresh air. He seemed reluctant to leave his book behind. "It's beautiful day out! You can't want to read forever." Snape looked like he was going to retort when she added sweetly, "Please?"

"Alright," he said. He looked slightly more pleased. "But let me get my book."

Lily rolled her eyes but waited all the same. As he double-backed she looked around at the moving paintings. There was one of a man in a suit of armour fending off a bear. He then turned to the lady he rescued and kneeled down in front of her, offering a flower.

 _How sweet,_ Lily thought. She always imagined herself with someone very romantic and charming in an old-fashioned kind of way. The kind of guy who would pick wildflowers for her just because he thought of her when he saw them. The kind of guy that liked to sit with her under the stars, but really he'd watch her watch them. Or sway to Ella Fitzgerald as they danced by refrigerator light at nighttime. (He had to love to dance.) Or even -

"Hey Lily."

Timothy Thompson (a Hufflepuff) was walking towards her. Lily started, realizing she had been daydreaming. "Hi," she said, smiling at him.

"What are you doing here?" Tim asked curiously. Lily was standing in the corridor alone, gazing at paintings.

"Just, er, admiring the paintings." She left out the daydreaming part. Tim nodded. "And waiting for Sev," she added.

"Hm," he said, shifting his bookbag. "You guys, uh, sure spend a lot of time together." Lily grinned. "That's 'cause he's my best friend," she said. "He told me I was magic before I knew I was a witch." She looked back at the painting of the bear, maiden, and knight.

"Best friends, huh?" Lily nodded. "Anything, uh, more than that?"

"What?" Lily turned back to look at him. Timothy had sandy-blonde hair and cute freckles. He laughed easily and had warm brown eyes. Right now, however, he seemed apprehensive, but maybe . . . a little hopeful?

"You and Sna - Sev."

"Uhm," Lily tucked some red hair behind her ear. "No . . . Not really." Her heartbeat quickened. Tim shifted his weight back and forth on his feet.

"Well, I was, erm, I was wondering if -" Lily's breath caught. "If you wanted to go to the Hogsmeade trip with me next weekend . . ." Happiness spread through Lily like the warm glow of firelight. "If you - if you want to, that is . . ."

She grinned. "Yeah," she breathed.

Tim looked up, his brown eyes surprised. "Yeah?"

She nodded, grinning more now. "Yeah! I'd love to."

Tim grinned, highlighting the freckles on his cheeks as the worry melted away. "Great!" he said. He stumbled on his robes as he started walking backwards. "Great. I'll uh, I'll see you at eight then?" He started backing away in the direction of the library.

Lily beamed. "See you then."

Tim grinned again and seemed like he wanted to say more, but just nodded and grinned some more. "Alright . . ." He turned and left, and there was a bit of a bounce in his step, Lily thought.

As soon as she was out of earshot Lily squealed quietly and did a happy dance.

 _YES!_ She thought. _Yes, yes, yes,YES!_

She was asked out on a date!

She glanced at her watch, if she hurried, Mary wouldn't leave to meet her boyfriend Terrence for another thirty minutes. Just enough time to run back to Gryffindor Tower, gush while she got ready, and ask her to ask Terrance about Tim.

She just took off running when - "Where are you going?"

Sev.

She'd forgotten about him completely.

Turning, red in the face, and an odd mixture of guilty but still undeniably pleased, Lily tried to hold in her smile. "Sev, I'm so sorry," she said breathlessly. "I have to go. You wouldn't understand, but - I - I have to go . . ."

Sev hunched his shoulders and looked sour.

"Sev, _please_ understand. I need to go."

"What for?" he said with hostility. "I thought we were going for a walk near the forest in the snow, just how you like."

"I know, but -"

"Isn't that why you dragged me out here?" His eyes were hard. Lily deflated somewhat. "What's really going on Lily?"

Her shoulders drooped. Should she tell him?

"I . . . It's important," she said, changing her mind. She decided . . . Well, it probably wasn't for the best.

Sev visibly changed. "Yeah," he said, his shoulders dropping. His pallor face was disappointed, but he was trying to show he didn't mind. "Go."

Lily caught his black eyes and smiled. He seemed to relax a bit and let his shoulders drop.

"See you at dinner?" Lily confirmed. Sev nodded.

"See you at dinner."

* * *

" _MARRRYYY!_ "

Mary dropped her lip gloss and she heard it clatter to the floor as she looked towards the door, where the sound had come from.

"MARY MARY MARYYY!" The door swung open in a rush and Lily bounced in to tell her the good news.

"But what do I wear!?" she pleaded after she was through.

"Borrow something of mine," Mary insisted. "I have a green sweater that might work really well for you or anything you find that you like. Just save the pink sweater and go-go boots for me," she winked.

"Thank you, thank you," Lily breathed.

Mary beamed. "Now, I have to finish getting ready but promise you'll tell me all the details again tonight when we go to bed!" Lily nodded solemnly. Mary left soon after but the redhead stayed to start looking through her things. After she was satisfied she had the _perfect_ outfit (red hair is hard to pair clothes with) she left the dormitory, realizing she was late for supper.

Coming down the stairs, she saw James slam the door to the boys dormitory. Lily raised her eyebrows and watched Potter stalk out of the common room and slam the portrait as well. He'd been in a sour mood for almost a month, and a few people had noticed a separation between him and Sirius. They hadn't been talking or laughing in class anymore, and when partner work came, there was a tension and James usually went with Remus, Sirius with Peter.

A moment later Remus came out of the dormitory sighing heavily. Peter was behind him, saying, "Well, you tried . . ."

Curious, Lily bounded down the stairs to meet Remus and Peter. "Hullo," she said.

"Hi," they murmured glumly. Pettigrew seemed a little uncomfortable talking to Lily, shifting a look to Remus, but she didn't see that as cause for concern as he usually was uncomfortable around people other than his roommates.

"What's up?" Lily asked. Peter and Remus exchanged looks. Remus, the more collected of the two, said, "What's up with you?"

Lily gave him a deadpan stare. "Really, Remus? Evasion tactic? What's up with Potter?"

"James is just going down to dinner," he said calmly. Lily raised a brow.

"And the brooding cloud hanging over him? Is that joining us for dinner too? It's been a month." Now it was Remus' turn to deadpan. She wasn't going to let his go. Pointedly, she asked, "Where's Black?"

Lupin shifted uncomfortably. "He's upstairs," he said vaguely.

"They've been having a row," Peter sighed. Remus shot him a pointed look and Peter looked like he'd said something wrong.

 _Definitely_ curious now, Lily looped an arm around Remus' and steered him towards the fire. "And _you're_ going to tell me all about it. Now, what have Ethel and Lucy been fighting about?" Peter snorted but Remus looked mildly confused.

"My mum loves that show," Peter clarified. " _I_ don't watch it - I mean I do, but only when she's around to watch it first . . ." he finished lamely. They both stared at him and he quieted. "Nevermind."

"Anyway," Lily said brusquely, "back to the topic at hand. C'mon this is _so_ juicy, they never fight." Remus withdrew his arm from hers and started moving towards the painting.

"I'm not going to ' _hand'_ over the answer to that question, Lily."

"Ha-ha."

"If you want to know, ask them yourself." He sighed heavily, as if very tired of this ongoing fight. "But I wouldn't suggest it." He turned and left, Pettigrew casting one last nervous glance at Lily before trailing behind him.

Putting her hands on her hips, Lily huffed and pursed her lips. After a moment's deliberation she climbed the stair to the boy's dormitory and knocked on the door marked "Third Years."

No response came except for the blaring sounds of Led's guitar. Lily knocked again. Nothing.

Chewing her lip for a moment, she decided to try opening up. "Sirius?" she called. She found him inside laying on his bed smoking (albeit, somewhat inexperienced). "Sirius?" she questioned.

He glanced up and when he saw who it was, sputtered, sitting up quickly. " _Godric_. Evans!" The scratch of a sonophone sounded and the music stopped. "What are you doing here?" He pushed some of his black hair out of his face. Now that she was here, Lily had no idea what she was planning on going to say. She decided on something neutral first.

"How do you know about Led Zepplin?"

Sirius grinned. "'Cause he's awesome. Mostly I started listening to tick my parents off, but than I was hooked."

"I see . . ."

Silence.

"So . . . What are you doing here?" He asked again. Lily realized the only explanation she had was rather noisy, and perhaps wasn't such a good idea to admit that.

"You should try The Who," she said bluntly.

He looked confused. "What?"

"Not what. Who."

"What's a Who?"

"It's a band."

"Oh, I see."

"Also a population in a Dr. Seuss book."

"You lost me again."

Lily smiled. "You should try them —- the band, I mean. They're very good. Less angst-y."

"I like angst-y."

"Ah."

After a moment of silence where neither of them knew how to proceed, she asked, "Can I come in?"

"Yeah," Sirius sounded surprised, but pleased. "Yeah, sure."

Lily tentatively entered (realizing she was somewhat in enemy territory and she'd never hear the end of it if either Sev or Potter found out) and sat on the only made bed in the room. Probably Remus'. Actually, now that she took a moment to look around, she saw that this space and the trunk and nightstand beside it was the only tidy spot in the room. _Definitely_ Remus'. There was also no personal items around.

Peter's nightstand had a picture of him and his mother on top and some sweets wrappers littering the floor. Another bed, with the blankets all rumbled and a pair of socks lying on top had a large clutter of Quidditch memorabilia covering every inch above the spread, including tickets taped to the wall and a Puddlemere United banner tacted to the ceiling above the pillow.

 _Someone's a Quidditch fan,_ Lily thought. And she knew just who it was.

Behind Sirius sat a couple of band posters, another quidditch banner, and a matching ticket to the one on the last bed. Lily wondered how long ago they went to that game together.

"So you gunna sit there staring at everything or tell me how you lost your way to the girl's room?"

Lily started. "Ah . . ." _What the heck_ , she thought _._ "Why are you and Potter fighting?"

Sirius' polite look quickly dropped into a frown.

"Sorry," Lily said in a hurry. "Look, if it's rude to ask —-"

Sirius turned and picked up his cigarette again. The atmosphere was icy. "You'd have to ask dear old Jamesie that, wouldn't you," he said lighting it and pointedly not looking at Lily.

"Sirius, I'm sorry I asked," Lily tried to salvage it. "I just was wondering what was going on -"

"He's the one being a prick about it. Ask _him_. As he's the one not talking to _me_ , I have no bloody idea what's going on with him." Lily felt very uncomfortable.

"Uhm . . . I guess I should go now . . ."

Sirius gave a fake smile. "Yeah. You should." He turned away from her and blared the music again. Taking her cue, Lily slid out of his room and headed down for dinner. She wondered if she could have possibly made that any worse. As she entered the Great Hall, she saw James brooding over his stew and decided something. She _definitely_ wasn't going to ask him about it.


	7. 7 Year Three

**Here we go! Thanks to both powerofthename and Lee Kyle for reviewing!**

 **Lee Kyle: Yes, the beginning years of Lily and James are going to be rather short snippets until we get to 6th or 7th year. Just to get the jist of things. In the beginning I don't think they were in each other's social circles much, and James was kind of a jerk, so . . .**

 **That being said, I did try to add more detail in this chapter. Hope you like it.**

 *****If you guys want something more in-depth, please, please, please check out my Gruff Impressions story (edited version)! It's my pride and joy.**

Chapter 7: Year Three

James' POV

"Hufflepuff Hippies."

"The Puffs' Puff."

"Peace n' Puff?"

"That's the one!" James declared. "The Peace n' Puff." He stuck a chip in mouth, grinning. Peter chuckled, looking rather pleased with himself.

"What are you lot doing?" Remus appeared clutching his school bag and stood behind the couch James was laying on. Pete was in the plush red armchair next to him. The one closest to the fire, Sirius' normal spot facing James, was characteristically empty.

Pete grinned. "Hattie Hill and Elizabeth Abbott convinced Professor Dumbledore to let them start a yoga club."

"What?" Remus shoved James' legs off the couch and, ignoring his protests, plopped down. " _Why?_ "

Peter shrugged and James rolled his eyes. "Something about connecting to the earth or outer peace begins from within or —- oh who the hell knows, let's be honest. We're just trying to come up with names for their yoga studio and MJ pub when they've finished at Hogwarts."

"We like the Peace n' Puff." Peter said with a hint of pride.

"Are only Hufflepuffs showing up to this yoga club?"

"Only ones dumb enough to."

Peter and Remus chortled. Their laughter died as Sirius exited the dormitory and headed straight for the portrait without so much as glancing at them. They were quiet for a moment. Remus spoke.

"You should -"

" _No_."

Remus glared at his stubbornness.

"But if you just -"

" _Nope_. Moving on." James stuck a chip in his mouth and looked at the clock on the wall. "We should get going if we want to beat the Hogsmeade crowd." Peter looked at the clock and sighed.

"Lets go," he sighed, picking up his jacket. Outside, the snow bit their cheeks and noses and the air was windy.

"I hate Valentine's Day," Pete muttered, rubbing his arms and looking around. The town was decorated with floating pink hearts that bobbed up and down the street slowly. Some sparkled and others sang.

" _Why?_ " James asked. "Sure it's girly as hell, but The Three Broomsticks is always less packed on Valentine's Day. Everyone's in Mrs. Puddlemores or out in pairs doing couple-y stuff."

"We should have taken the secret entrance," Peter complained while he blew on his hands and the wind picked up.

" _Agreed_ ," Remus chimed in, also rubbing his gloved hands. "I _know_ -" he said as James opened his mouth. "That's what Sirius took. Speaking of," he looked around. "I'm supposed to meet him now. Pete, you'll switch with me in an hour?" Peter nodded. Remus glanced darkly at James. "This whole bloody thing is ridiculous. We're sick of all this going back and forth."

James stuck his hands in his pockets and kicked some snow. Remus sighed and rolled his eyes upward. "Meet us outside Zonkos in an hour."

"But _I_ wanted to go to Zon-"

"An _hour_ , James." And with that, the young bookworm turned and left.

" _Fine_ ," James said tartly. He kicked some more snow and said to Pete, "C'mon. Let's get those butterbeers."

As predicted, The Three Broomsticks was not overly packed and they were able to get their drinks fairly easily. So easily, in fact, that there was still a quarter of an hour when James got bored enough to leave.

"But what are we going to do?" Peter chattered. "It was so warm in there . . ."

"We'll go to Honeydukes," James shrugged.

"If you think it's a good idea . . ." muttered Pete. He trudged after James, jogging to keep up. They walked the length of the town and avoided running into any bobbing hearts in their way (especially the sparkly ones). The atmosphere in Honeydukes was very different from that of The Three Broomsticks.

" _Golly_ ," Pete muttered with raised brows. _Everything_ was pink. The whole store. Every item - chocolate, hard candy, sugar quill and cluster - was dusted in pinks ranging from light to magenta. "It's a bloody nightmare . . ."

"Let's grab and go," James agreed with a disgusted look on his face. Within a few short minutes they were out. There may have been some line cutting, but _technically_ Nick Busse stepped out on his own accord after his laces were tied together and he tripped out of line. And the Gaspar sisters were really just trying to be nice after James flirted a bit with Adeline and hinted he might take her to Hogsmeade sometime.

"Are you really going to take her?" Pete asked when they were outside. He unwrapped his giant lolly as they headed towards Zonko's.

James tore open his cockroach cluster and snorted. "Probably not." Peter chortled and they stopped in front of Zonko's. He started licking his lollipop, gazing around.

"Hey James." He tapped Potter on the shoulder and pointed. James turned around to see none other than Lily Evans standing in front of a shop, red hair sticking out brightly against the snow.

"- had a really good time," she was saying. She was facing a brown-haired kid who looked like a ninny.

She leaned up and kissed his cheek, both turning as pink at the hearts in the town.

 _Pow!_

The snowball hit her right in the face as she was drawing back. Lily whipped around, angry.

" _Potter!_ " she growled, "You jerk, get out of here!"

"Make me," he said in a mock tone and crossed his arms.

" _Fine_." Lily pointed her wand and James slipped on the ice that appeared under his feet.

"Whoa!" He fell on his back and tried to get up but kept slipping over and over again as the ice re-made itself at his feet. Peter made some failed attempts at helping him but he kept sliding and slipping all over the place, looking like an idiot.

"I'll walk you back," block-nose said to Lily. He was still a little red in the face from her peck. He took her hand and they started heading towards the castle before James could recover.

After finally getting to his feet, James glared, fuming at their backs. All was quiet. Peter shifted his eyes towards him, unsure what to do.

Suddenly James whipped around, startling Remus, whose Hiccup Sweets went flying as he and Sirius approached.

"You're _late_ ," he spat, (even though they weren't). He glared at Sirius as he marched past without another word. Instead of heading inside, he walked around the shop to the lean on the fence in the back.

" _Sheesh_. What's wrong with him?" Remus inclined his head towards Potter. Peter sighed.

"Lily."

"Of course."

"Was with another boy."

" _What?_ " Sirius asked.

Peter's eyes widened, realizing that maybe he shouldn't have said that in front of Black. Sirius thought quietly for a minute.

"Well, I should go," Remus finally said, casting shifting glances between the others.

"No," Sirius spoke up decidedly. "I'll go." Peter looked at him in confusion.

"But I thought -"

Remus interjected, understanding what needed to be done: "Let him go, Pete." Peter looked at them uncertainty. Remus nodded to Sirius who left. He followed the trail of kicked up snow to where James was leaning with both hands on the fence. He walked up and stood by James' side silently.

Black pulled out his pack of cigarettes, where only one was missing. "So . . ." he finally said, lighting one with his wand.

Nothing.

"Lily had a date." He took an inexperienced puff.

Silence. "With Tim."

Disgruntled noise. "And she had a good time?"

James broke his gaze long enough to glower at Sirius before staring straight ahead again.

"I see . . ." Sirius took another puff and offered a cig to his silent friend. James continued to look straight ahead.

"Well if it makes you feel any better, I hexed old Snivelly who was spying on her —the little creep. Hit him with _ascendio_ and gave him antlers about an hour ago. He's probably still floating around in the back alley near the Shack, nobody goes back there. Plus . . ." He withdrew from his pocket a wand that most certainly _wasn't_ his.

James looked at the wand, one eyebrow raised in interest. Then he looked at the tree again.

They sat in silence.

After about five minute Sirius took the plunge again. "You know . . . Evans came to our room," he said.

Light flashed across his glasses as James looked up in alarm. "Was she looking for me?" Sirius gave him a look. "Right." He clenched his jaw and looked at a knot on the tree bitterly.

"She came to see me, actually." James stood very still, holding his breath. "Dunno why, but we talked about Led Zepplin. Oh yeah — and she asked why we were fighting." James couldn't bear what was sure to follow. "And then I told her to get out."

What?

"Well," Sirius said, dropping his fag and rubbing it into the snow, "That's all I had to say, so I'll continue on my merry way now." He put his hands in his dark blue jacket pockets and started whistling as he went.

Sirius has taken five steps when he heard it.

"Wait."

He paused, and turned, hands still in pockets. James looked a little unsure.

"Did you really tell her off?"

Sirius broke into a grin and the tension from the last month lifted.

"Well," he said, "Can't have broads coming after me if you called 'em first."

"You better bet we can't," James warned while grinning. He joined Sirius. "C'mon," he said, jerking his head. "Let's join the others." And there was a finality about the whole thing.

"Yeah . . ." Sirius agreed. "And James?"

"Mhm?"

"If you ever like a girl I fancy I'll kill you."

"You first," James pushed him and they raced back to the main road.

 **AN: Sorry to my Hufflepuff friends for the jibe at the beginning of the chapter! Hufflepuffs are so nice. And they're particularly good finders. (10 points to whoever gets that reference!)**


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